


Absence Makes the Heart Grow Jealous

by NoReasonJustBored



Category: Game Shakers, Henry Danger
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-22
Updated: 2019-05-28
Packaged: 2020-03-09 07:21:50
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,231
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18912235
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NoReasonJustBored/pseuds/NoReasonJustBored





	1. Chapter 1

Charlotte and Henry started dating a few months before their high school graduation. Everyone thought that it was a bad idea for them to begin a relationship because they were already set to go to separate colleges. Henry decided to attend the local community college, so that he could still be Kid Danger, and Charlotte would be a few hours away at Stanford on a full ride. 

Before deciding to take the risk, they agreed that it wouldn’t work if both parties were not 110% committed. Knowing that they both wanted to make ‘them’ work above all else helped them to persevere through the rough patches. In the beginning the miles apart placed a strain on their relationship since they were so used to seeing each other every day. But they adjusted, they really put in the time and effort needed keep their relationship afloat. The distance eventually forced them to have better communication skills. They learned to articulate how they were feeling more concisely since they couldn’t read each other’s body language through text.

Since starting school they had both grown up a lot more. Charlotte decided to make the most of her college experience. She absolutely focused on her academics, but she wasn’t afraid to hit up a frat party every once in a while. She really found her stride in clothing design and would sometimes even sport her own looks to these events. Her wardrobe as a whole was more diversified. While her new clothes were far from risqué, she did show a little skin more often than not. She was overall a more confident and open person. 

Henry was maturing in his own ways as well. He was taking over more responsibility when it came to the superhero business and the regular business. He would go out on missions alone frequently and only requested Ray for backup when absolutely necessary. Henry was really coming into his own as a hero. He was even considering rebranding himself and retiring his Kid Danger moniker for good. He couldn't yet decide between Man Danger, Sir Danger or Mr. Danger. He would have to workshop the name a little more.

It had been almost a year since Charlotte and Henry became official. In that time, they learned a lot about each other. Individually and as a couple. Charlotte learned that Henry was extremely needy and possessive and jealous. Henry learned that Charlotte was not. 

Sometimes it bothered Henry that Charlotte was so nonchalant about people hitting on him. They had once been on a date where the waitress flirted with Henry the ENTIRE time. She was even so bold to leave her number on the receipt with a winky face next to her name. Charlotte didn’t even bat an eyelash. And he knows that Char noticed, she was way too observant not to pick on the very obvious server. She didn’t make any comments about it during or after the dinner.

He, on the other hand was always claiming her in front of random people. He couldn’t leave her alone for two seconds without coming back to some schmuck shooting their shot. Guy after guy were constantly getting curved by his beautiful girlfriend. That didn’t stop Henry from making his place known. A glare and a not so subtle hand around her waist or shoulder usually did the trick. He just wanted to drive home to these dudes that they had zero chance, not with **_his_** Char. 

Henry figured that he should be happy that she was so secure in their relationship. And he was happy, but maybe he would like to see a little jealousy every once in a while. Charlotte had such a casual attitude towards the attention he got from other women, and sometimes men, that it felt like she didn’t care at all. He knew that he had already hit the jackpot with Charlotte, she was truly one of the best things to happen to him. He just wanted to feel as if the same was true for her. 

Their first anniversary would fall during spring break so he convinced Charlotte to let him plan the entire week. She was hesitant to leave everything in his hands but conceded after a few days of pleading and pouting over FaceTime. She almost couldn’t believe how quickly she caved after seeing Henry’s adorable puppy dog expression. She did always find it hard to resist those beautiful brown eyes. Especially when combined with his hopeful begging to, “Just trust me babe. Pleeeaase.” Charlotte folded like fresh laundry. 

Henry decided that they would go to New York for their break. Charlotte loved musicals and fashion, both of which there was an abundance of in New York. He decided that he would take her to a Broadway show, a concert and a runway show. He was ambitious. 

During his research for the trip Henry discovered that the first installment of the official New York Fashion Week was hosted every February. They had already missed it but there were usually a series of smaller, more accessible shows in the month or so following. He was able to secure them seats at a show with an up-and-coming brand that seemed to fit Charlotte’s new style. 

During his deep dive into fashion shows, plays and all the other events happening during their break, Henry saw that the Boo Man Group had shows in the city that same week. Charlotte loved them plus it would make up for that one year on her birthday that she missed their performance because of superhero shenanigans. 

When trying to get tickets online he discovered that the group was sold out the entire time they would be in New York. Sighing in defeat, Henry was about to click off the browser when he noticed that the Boo Man Group weren’t doing a solo performance. They actually were just the opening act for none other than...Double G! 

A tiny spark of hope bloomed in his chest when he realized that he just might have a connect to get into the concert after all. He figured it was a long shot but he quickly pulled out his phone and searched in the contacts. Once he found the name he was looking for, he immediately hit the call button. 

Biting the corner of his bottom lip in anticipation, he hoped that she still had the same phone number and would pick up. Tapping his fingers on his thigh nervously Henry listened to the ringing tone and was just about to disconnect the line when he heard a raspy, “Hello?”

“Hey. Babe?” Henry asked. 

Babe squinted down at her phone in confusion and cleared her throat. “Henry?”

“Yeah. I’m sorry, did I wake you up? I completely forgot about the time difference between California and New York.” Henry said while glancing at his clock on his beside table. 9:02 pm. It would be after midnight over there. _Oops_ , thought Henry. 

“Uhhh yeah, that’s okay though. I’m up now, what’s going on?” Babe wondered while sitting up in bed. She hadn’t talked to Henry in over a year, unless you counted his extremely scarce retweets on Twitter or a rare comment under her posts on Instagram. 

“I was wondering if you could help me get tickets to one of Double Gs shows in March?” Henry asked hesitantly while scratching the back of his neck. 

“Uuuuuhh” was Babe’s reply. 

“It’s totally okay if you can’t help me out. I figured I would at least ask because all the dates were sold out. And I know you are close to his family. You know what? Forget I brought it up” Henry said in a rush. 

“Henry it’s okay, I’m still half asleep and I was just contemplating if I would be able to get you tickets. Chill.” Babe replied with a small laugh. 

“Sorry. I’m a little high strung right now. I’m trying to plan a spring break to remember and these tickets would definitely get me one step closer.”

“I’ll tell you what, I’ll check with Trip tomorrow at work. He pretty much has access to all his dad’s shows. I can probably hook you up with backstage passes, VIP, the whole thing.”

“Really? Oh my gosh, thank you so much. I can’t believe it” Henry exclaimed excitedly. 

“Yeah just text me tomorrow with the details. What days you’ll be in town, number of tickets, whatever else” she said while yawning. 

“Ok, ok will do. Thanks again. I really owe you one Babe” Henry said sincerely. 

“Don’t mention it, I’ll be happy to collect on a favor from Kid Danger” Babe teasingly retorted. 

“Well, have a good night. I’ll let you get back to sleep. Talk to you later.”

“Talk to you later” Babe replies before hanging up her phone. 

A large smile covered his face when he thought about all the fun they were going to have. Spring Break couldn’t come fast enough. 

Henry was so busy arranging the trip that he barely had any extra time. He and Char usually FaceTimed every night but recently that had decreased to two or three times a week. On top of all the trip planning, he was out on more late night crime alerts than usual. It seemed as if every villain in Swellview had suddenly gotten the motivation to enact their little schemes all at once. Like they all decided that they needed to complete their plots for total domination before Spring Break. Maybe they were going on vacation too.

Henry was busy consolidating his budget one afternoon when he got a video chat request. Looking up from the document that he was reading he searched under all the pages spread out on his desk for his phone. He finally located it under a credit card statement that he had printed. Looking at the screen he involuntarily smiled when he saw the contact picture. Pressing accept, he was greeted by the glowing umber skin of his gorgeous girlfriend. 

"Hey Love" Henry greeted with a dazzling smile.

"Hey Handsome. I was just calling to see how you were doing on budget day" Charlotte responded.

Furrowing his brows and squinting slightly, Henry chuckled. "How'd _**you**_ know it was budget day?"

"Well I know you've been working on being more fiscally responsible after I explained that good credit wasn't just for 'crusty old dudes'. Plus your card balance is due tomorrow and you always wait until the last minute to figure out your bills."

"Wow, aren't you quite the detective?" Henry sassed lightly.

"Yes. Yes I am. Also, you put it in our shared calendar with a frowny face beside it." Charlotte smirked.

"Oh yeah, I remember that now. That was after the third time I had pushed it off for later. I decided to put it in the joint calendar because I knew you would hold me accountable if I didn't do it."

"Smart plan. You know I can help if you need anything."

"Yeah, actually I have a question about interest rates. How do you-" Henry paused.

Charlotte could see Henry looking at his phone in contemplation while biting the corner of his bottom lip. “Uh, baby?" Charlotte inquired after few seconds of silence.

"Hey, I'm actually getting an important call, let me call you back later okay?"

"Oh ok, don't forget to tell me...your question about interest" she trailed off when he she realized that he had already clicked over to the other line.

 _Strange_ thought Charlotte.

He reluctantly interrupted his conversation with Char because Babe was calling him back. He needed to know if she was able to secure the tickets for them. But, he decided it would be a good idea not to tell Charlotte who was calling. He didn't want her to figure out the surprise location and a clue like that could give it away. She wouldn't be able to guess where they were going since she didn't know that he was talking to Babe. What other reason would Henry have to speak to the New York native?

Henry spent the next few weeks coordinating with Babe about his Epic Spring Break Trip. She helped him get the concert tickets and extra perks but she also gave him advice about what other events would be in town that week. She provided the inside scoop about all the cool local spots in their area. She also helped him pick which Broadway show they thought he and Charlotte might like the best. She assisted with picking what hotel would work best with his budget. Babe was basically his travel agent without any pay. 

When everything was finalized and shaping up to be the best spring break of all time, Henry called Babe to ask her what he could do in order to repay her for all the assistance. She responded that she was more than happy to help and if she thought of anything, she would let him know. He told that he would help her with whatever, whenever and let her know that it had been great catching up with her over the last few weeks. 

Henry had previously only considered her a nuisance based off the impression she made when they first met. Now he thought of her as, at the very least, a good acquaintance. Maybe even a friend. Time seemed to have mellowed her out significantly. He might even consider accepting her friend requests on his private social media pages. He followed her profiles but she had seemed like she would be hella annoying online so he held off on letting her follow him back. 

As the vacation approached, Henry got more and more nervous. He went back in forth in his head about if Charlotte was going to hate everything that he planned. Unnecessary thoughts plagued his mind. _What if her interests had changed? What if she hates Boo Man Group now? What if doesn’t like fashion anymore? What if she doesn’t even like **ME** anymore?_

His fears were quickly assuaged on the day before they were set to leave for New York. He, Ray and Schowz were all standing around talking while they hula-hooped. He had just dropped his hoop for the thousandth time when Charlotte came into the ManCave. She immediately dropped all of her luggage after stepping off the elevator and catapulted into his arms. He hugged her back tightly and when he pulled back to look at her face he could see the love shining in her eyes. He let out a sigh of contentment while holding her in his arms. Then they proceeded to have the most intense, toe curling, lip tingling kiss that they had ever shared.

Their passionate, borderline inappropriate kiss came to an abrupt halt when they heard an airhorn sound off loudly right into their ears. They hadn’t seen each other since New Year’s day, could you really blame them for getting swept up into the moment? Quickly jumping apart they looked around to notice that Ray and Schwoz were staring at them incredulously. 

“Geez guys, did you remember to breathe?” Ray exclaimed. 

“Yeah it looked like you were both trying to suffocate each other with your tongues.” Schwoz snidely commented. 

Charlotte looked embarrassed to have lost her inhibitions in front of the pair and weakly called out “Shut up!” while rubbing her arms awkwardly. 

Henry chuckled and pulled his mortified girlfriend into his arms again and gave her a simple kiss on the forehead. 

“What are you doing here babe? I thought I was going to pick you up from school on the way to the airport tomorrow morning?”

“You were but I wanted to surprise you. You’ve spent so much time planning this trip that I feel like we haven’t spoken much lately.”

“Awwww...you missed little ole' me? I’m honored” Henry responded jokingly. 

Charlotte hit him lightly on the arm. “I mostly missed Jasper” she says with a smirk. “Where is he by the way? I wanted to see him before we left. I thought he was coming home for break?"

“Jasper was invited to some kind of exclusive bucket convention last minute so he’s actually in Wisconsin right now.”

“Oh. That’s weird, but totally Jasper. I also missed those two goofballs, but don’t tell them that.”

“Your secret is safe with me.” Henry said lowly while bending down to give Charlotte another kiss. Before they could even brush lips, the air horn let out three quick spurts too close for comfort courtesy of Ray. 

“Uh uh uh. No more of that in here. I don’t like to be reminded of how single I am.”

“And stop hogging Charlotte!” Schowz said while pulling Henry away to bestow a brief hug upon her. 

“I missed you! You know these idiots can barely comprehend what I’m saying most days” Schowz lamented. 

“That's because of your silly accent and you know it!” Ray cuts in while pushing Schowz away with a palm to his face. 

He gives Charlotte a quick hug as well and says, “Welcome back Brains. _**I**_ didn’t miss you at all.”

“Love you too Ray” Charlotte says with a smile. 

They spend the whole day in the ManCave watching movies and catching up on life. This place was her home away from home and she wouldn’t it change it for the world.


	2. Chapter 2

The next morning Charlotte and Henry slept in a little longer than planned, since they didn’t have to detour to pick her up, and then headed to the airport. She was excited about the flight but still didn’t know where they were going. Henry just told her to pack warm and to bring a good variety of clothing options ranging from upscale to lounge attire. 

Charlotte assumed they were going somewhere with a chilly climate and had narrowed it down to the continental Northeast. She was sort of hoping they were going to Washington D.C. so that she could visit the National Museum of African American History and Culture. But she had a feeling that Henry would consider that too much learning during their break from school. 

Contemplating about their soon to be destination, Charlotte was seated comfortably next to Henry at their gate and had her head resting on his shoulder. They sat in peaceful silence until the flight 303 to New York was called. “That’s us baby” Henry murmured into her hair while sitting up slowly. She lifted her head and looked into her boyfriend’s eyes. 

“We’re going to New York?” she excitedly inquired. 

“Yep. Surprised?” Henry retorted. 

“Definitely. Thanks so much for planning this.” 

“No problem. Anything for my favorite person.”

Charlotte gave Henry a brief peck on the lips in answer before standing up and gathering her luggage to head to the plane. 

When they arrived in New York they immediately felt the shift in atmosphere. No longer were they in the slow-moving, sluggish small town they called home. They were in the big city. It was fast paced and edgy. Angry exclamations could be heard from almost every corner. Charlotte loved it. It felt like they were about to embark on some fantastical journey. 

After gathering their suitcases, they started towards the front of the terminal where Henry was planning on hailing a cab to take them downtown to their hotel where they would chill for the remainder of the day. They had a lot on the itinerary starting bright and early tomorrow morning. 

Henry was looking down at his phone to grab the directions to their destination from his email when he heard a high pitched squeal. This was followed by the sound of quickly approaching heels clacking against tile. Looking up in mild confusion, he was tackled into a hug by a small figure with brown hair. _Babe_ he realized belatedly and then briefly returned her affection with a few awkward pats on the back. 

“Henry! You made it! How was your flight?” the young woman asked a touch too loudly. 

“Babe! The flight was fine, thanks. But you’re here! At the airport! Why are you at the airport?”

“I wanted my face to be the first familiar face you saw when you got here! I’m your welcome committee. Welcome to New York City!”

“Oh ok. Thanks.” Henry said while chuckling uncomfortably. 

Charlotte cleared her throat, drawing their attention to her. She had a small, tight smile on her face.

“Charlotte! I didn’t see you there! Welcome!”

“Thanks so much” she responded in an overly sweet tone. 

“Ok guys, follow me!! I have a car that will take us to your hotel and then I figured we could grab some food and catch up! Sound good?”

Without waiting for a response, the perky brunette turned away and walked towards the airport doors. 

“I didn’t know that Babe was going to be here” Charlotte said to Henry in a nonchalant tone.

“That makes two of us. But hey, she got us a ride. Now I don’t have to pay cab fare. Nice.”

“So Nice.” Charlotte stated sarcastically. 

Looking at her curiously Henry was about to ask if everything was okay when Babe interrupted them with a loud exclamation. 

“Guys! Come on! We gotta try to beat this traffic!”

When they arrived at their hotel to drop off their belongings, Babe got out of the car with them. 

“Ummm, are you coming to Check-In with us?” Henry asked.

“Yeah I figured it would take you guys a while to sign in and take the stuff to your rooms. Uber doesn’t have a wait function” Babe laughed. “I’ll just call another ride to take us to the restaurant when you guys are done.”

Walking ahead of them Babe scanned the lobby, “Ooooh look Henry. I told you that this chandelier was gorgeous, the pictures don’t do it justice.”

“And there’s that Italian tile you were telling me about, I didn’t think I would appreciate it that much but it looks gooooood.” Henry replied.

“Right! It really gives it an extra something huh?” Babe agreed.

Henry nodded while scanning the building. He was glad that he ended up choosing this hotel. There was a cheaper one in the running but Babe convinced him that the little bit of extra money would be worth it for the ambiance. She was right. 

Charlotte watched their exchange with skeptical eyes. _Did Babe help Henry pick out this hotel?_

Babe stayed in the lobby while they went to unburden themselves of their luggage. When they came back down she popped up like a jack in the box and clasped her hands together. 

“Change of plans. I was texting everyone and they want to have lunch with us. You guys down?”

“Actually we were thinking that Charlotte and I could stay here for lunch. Order room service, unwind after our travels. You know, keep it low-key” Henry rambled.

“Oh. Sure, sure. Well I want to take you guys to this restaurant on 5th and Main, it has amazing food. Maybe we can do dinner there, 7 o’clock sound good?”

“What do you think Char?” Henry says while glancing at Charlotte who is standing next to him. 

“Yeah. Sounds like a plan.” She responds.

“Ok great! I’ll let everyone know about the later time.” Babe said as she walked up to Charlotte and gave her a quick side hug. Then she turned to Henry and gave him a full front-facing hug that lasted a little too long for comfort. 

“Call me if you need anything in the meantime, you still have my number right?” Babe asked.

“If it hasn’t changed since I spoke to you last then yes I have it.”

Babe giggles and lightly caresses his forearm, “You’re so funny.”

“Hilarious” deadpanned Char. 

“Bye Henry” Babe replied in an enthusiastic yet sultry tone. 

She didn't bothering saying anything to Charlotte before she flitted away.


	3. Chapter 3

_This dinner is a disaster_ thought Henry as he subtlety moved closer to Charlotte for what felt like the two millionth time in the last 40 minutes.

They were sitting in a circular booth with all of the Game Shakers. Charlotte was on the end of one side while Henry was to her left and Babe was to his left. Every time he moved to the right to get near Charlotte (and further from Babe) it seemed like she mimicked his actions to be closer to him.

It was getting on his nerves that she was constantly touching him and giggling at things he knew for a fact weren’t funny. However, he didn’t know how to tell her to back off without hurting her feelings. He wasn’t the most tactful when it came to things like this. Also, it wasn’t typical that a girl hit on him when he didn’t reciprocate the sentiment.

And he truly did not return her affections. She was a nice girl but she was a little too naive and too hyper for him. Plus, the most amazing woman he had ever met was already his girlfriend. He needn’t look anywhere else because Charlotte provided everything he never even knew he wanted or needed in a mate.

Charlotte was truly his partner in every way. She was beautiful and smart and talented. She was confident and witty and compassionate. She was a goddess and he was lucky she even wanted to date a peasant like him. He one hundred percent knew this to be true.

He also knew that Charlotte was starting to get agitated by Babe’s behavior as well. At first he didn’t really understand what was happening because Charlotte is always composed. But as the long night wore on he started to notice the cracks in her facade.

It started when they first showed up outside the restaurant. Henry was helping Charlotte out of the cab when he heard his name being called in a high pitched tone.

“Henry! Hey!” Babe waves enthusiastically.

She is surrounded by Trip, Hudson and Kenzie who all greet he and Charlotte with smiles and waves as they approach.

“So guys, this food is delicious and I can’t wait until you try it.” Babe says while linking her arm in the crook of Henry’s elbow and pulling him inside. At this action Charlotte raises one eyebrow but says nothing as she follows the group through the door.

When seated the waiter asks for drink orders and Babe proceeds to tell them that she wants a fruit punch and that Henry will take a lemonade because he loves lemonade sooooo much.

“Right Hen?” she asked while batting her eyelashes flirtatiously.

In the corner of his eye he sees Charlotte roll her eyes at the statement. _Hen? Who told her she could call him that?_

“Right.” Henry coughed out awkwardly before the rest of the table gave their beverage choices as well.

After ordering their food the group chatted amicably while waiting for dinner to arrive. The dinner seemed to be going along fine when it suddenly all took a turn for the worst.

Henry was turned towards Char giving her some hints about a few of the events they would experience on their vacation when Babe interrupted their conversation.

“Ooh what’s this?” Babe inquires while picking up Henry’s hand and cradling it in both of hers. She was referring to the invisibility ring that Henry was wearing. She then decides to twist off the jewelry and place it on her own hand. She puts it on her left ring finger and then sticks the hand out for the table to admire.

“Looks good, doesn’t it?” she inquires.

Her friends murmur their agreement but Charlotte just scoffs lightly, gives her the side eye and sips her iced tea with lemon.

“That’s actually an invention from Schwoz, I’ll take that back now.” Henry says after letting her admire it for a few more moments.

He places his hand out patiently for the ring but Babe refuses to relinquish it. “Actually, I think I like it and I’ll wear it for the rest of dinner.”

Before Henry could reply Charlotte quickly butted in and said, “Actually, I think it’s Henry’s and you’ll give it back now.”

Charlotte then smoothly turned back to Kenzie who she was sitting across from and asked her another question about the game they were previously discussing.

Babe gave the ring back without further protest.

After they had finished their dinner, they were looking at the desert menu to decide which treat they each wanted. Henry was leaning towards the sundae or a piece of cheesecake. While he was deliberating, Babe turned to Henry and asked if he wanted to share a sundae with her. Henry politely declined, he definitely wanted his own dessert.

After deciding on a slice of cheesecake he asked everyone what they were getting. Trip and Hudson both decided on fried Oreos. Kenzie chose the chocolate cake and Babe chose the Brownie with a scoop of ice cream. Charlotte got the sundae.

After ordering their last course the waiter walked away and Babe turned to Henry for the countless time. She reached her arm up and touched the front of his hair.

To his benefit, Henry quickly pulled away and asked in an incredulous tone, “Uh…What are you doing?”

“Your hair just looked so soft, I just wanted to see for myself if that was true.” Babe replied.

“You could have just asked him” Hudson responds nonchalantly.

“Yeah instead of invading his personal space.” Char says lowly under her breath.

“Well is it soft?” Trip asks curiously.

“How did it feel?” Kenzie inquired simultaneously, drowning out Charlotte’s annoyed grumbling.

“Amazing” she sighs out with a small smile in Henry’s direction.

“Thanks? I guess?” came his weirded out response.

“You’re welcome.” She said happily.

Putting her hand on Henry’s shoulder, she leans up to whisper in his ear “But speaking of thanks, how are you going to repay me for my help Kid Danger?”

Lightly pushing her away, Henry asked if she needed anything in particular.

“Well I was thinking that maybe we could go out on the town, just the two of us.”

Clearing his throat awkwardly Henry started to reply, “Actually, Char and I are d-“

“Okay guys! I have the best part of the meal for you” the waiter says while bringing out everyone’s sweets.

At this point Charlotte has had enough. She has been understanding and accommodating all night. She has tried her hardest not to make a scene about this little girl’s relentless flirting but she was done.

When Char’s sundae is in front of her she takes a bite to calm her nerves and then turns her head to the left.

“Babe?” Charlotte asks coyly.

“Yes?” Both Henry and Babe reply.

Charlotte smirks. That’s the exact reaction she was hoping to garner.

“Do you want a bite of my ice cream?” She says while holding her spoon to Henry’s face.

Henry immediately takes the spoonful of ice cream without hesitation.

Charlotte then wipes some ice cream off the corner of his mouth and licks it off her finger.

Henry stares at her lustfully the entire time.

“Mm. Delicious.” She says while returning his heated gaze. Then she reaches for his hair.

“You know what Babe, Hen really does have soft hair.” Charlotte says while running her fingers through his blond locks.

“I almost forgot since I hadn’t touched it in a while.” Henry groans as Char lightly scratches his scalp and he leans into her hand, craving more contact.

Kenzie clears her throat, breaking Henry out of his reverie.

The table goes back to their eating their desserts eagerly after that. All except Babe, who is pouting and looks as if someone has kicked her puppy.

After quickly devouring his cheesecake Henry turned to Charlotte to ask for more of her sundae.

Charlotte complied with his request by spooning another bite and holding it to his lips again. They continued alternating spoonfuls until her dessert was finished.

Since his hands were free, Char took her left hand in his right. Henry interlaced their fingers on instinct. He rubbed her palm with his thumb unconsciously. Deciding to take it a step further, Charlotte unlocked their hands and played with his slim fingers. She slowly traced each of his digits up and then back down to the center of his palm before connecting their hands again.

Babe watched this intimate action with envious eyes. Hudson was still working on his Oreos obliviously. Kenzie looked on with a dumbfounded expression while Trip nodded his head, silently praising Henry for landing a gorgeous girl like Charlotte.

When the waiter came back to clear plates and ask how everyone was paying Babe responded that everyone was separate. Henry quickly cut in that he and Charlotte were actually on a bill together.

Gathering her purse, Charlotte gave Henry a lingering kiss on the cheek and told him that she was going to the bathroom really quick.

When she left, Hudson’s eyes widened in discovery. “Wait, are you guys dating?”

Henry rolled his eyes in response.

After Charlotte finished, she washed and dried her hands and was looking down into her purse for her lipstick when she heard the restroom door open.

Glancing up, she saw Babe approaching cautiously like a frightened deer. She ignored the girl and leaned closer to the mirror to reapply the fading burgundy.

“Heeeeeyyyy.” Babe said nervously.

“Hi.” Charlotte replied while taking a paper towel and blotting the corners of her lips.

“About that… whole thing. I’m sorry.”

“I’m not the one you need to apologize to” she responds while throwing away the paper towel.

“U-ummm h-huh?” was Babe’s stammered response.

Zipping up her purse, Charlotte sighed before turning towards the brunette.

“I’m not the one you’ve hit on constantly since we arrived in New York. I’m not the one whose personal space you’ve disregarded and whose boundaries you neglected. I’m not the one who you threw yourself at wholeheartedly even though you received no reciprocation.” Char replies in a calm but commanding tone.

“I-I… But I- uhhhh… I wasn’t trying to- umm”

“But you did. You’ve made Henry very uncomfortable since we’ve been here and that’s not okay. Even if he didn’t have a girlfriend, you have got to learn how to pick up a hint. He just wasn’t into you.”

Looking down at the floor Babe said in a small voice, “I didn’t realize.”

Lifting up her head by the chin Charlotte looked into the younger girls eyes. “I know, that’s why I’m telling you now. If a guy that **you** Didn’t like had done what you did today, how would you feel?”

Babe took a moment to think about the question seriously. “Creeped out. Violated. Disrespected.”

“Exactly. Why do you think it’s any different with Henry?” Charlotte replied before grabbing her purse and leaving the bathroom.

When she returned to the table everyone was signing their receipts and leaving their tips. Henry stood up and placed his hands on her hips. “Everything okay Char?”

“Everything is fine” Charlotte replied before briefly pecking his lips.

When Babe came out of the bathroom she noticed their simple kiss and then saw Henry helping Charlotte into her coat.

Babe couldn’t help but let out a large sigh in disappointment. _I should have known that she was his girlfriend. He kept asking if I thought she would like certain events and saying that this needed to be the best trip ever for her. I’m so dumb. No one that hot is single._

As they all exited the restaurant and journeyed back into the chilly night air Babe asked if she could talk to Henry for a moment.

Stepping aside, Babe apologized to Henry for her behavior. She said that just because he was ‘Handsome Henry’ didn’t mean she needed to be ‘Basic Babe’. She also told him that he and Charlotte made a cute couple.

He chuckled and thanked her for the compliment then let her know that there were no hard feelings. After saying goodbye he walked over to Charlotte who was wrapping up her conversation with Trip, Kenzie and Hudson. Henry bid them goodbye as well.

As they walked in the opposite direction from the group, Henry slung his arm around Charlotte’s shoulder and asked, “What did you say to her? You give her one of your famous _**Char Chats**_?”

“Maybe. What did she say to you?” Charlotte inquires while reaching up to intertwine their fingers and wrap her other arm around Henry’s waist.

“She told me that she didn’t mean to infringe upon my personal space and was sorry that she made me feel uneasy.”

“Good for her” was Charlotte’s simple reply.

“Uh Huh. So you had nothing to do with that?”

“I may have given her a quick lesson on human decency. Possibly.”

“Well I know you definitely gave her a lesson on not messing with your man.”

“I have no clue what you are talking about.”

“You were jealous. It took me a while to notice. I wasn’t sure that you could even feel that emotion, if I’m being honest.” Henry laughed.

“Still not sure what you’re referring to.” Charlotte replied.

“Don’t worry, I thought that territorial display during dessert was super sexy babe.” Henry whispered to her before gently kissing the shell of her ear.

Charlotte bit her lower lip and looked up at Henry through her eyelashes.

“Don’t get used to it” she deadpanned.


End file.
